Senegal Constitutional Council rejects opposition leader's presidential candidacy
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00:00 The ruling came down just before midnight and delivers a massive blow to Senegal's main
00:05 opposition party.
00:07 The Supreme Court has now confirmed Ousmane Sonko's six-month suspended prison sentence
00:12 for libel against the country's tourism minister.
00:17 The state is in fact the kingpin behind all of this and has violated all the laws, violated
00:23 all the international commitments, has ignored the rule of law and democracy and has even
00:28 changed the cultural values in this country.
00:34 This is a state that has no limits.
00:39 Ousmane Sonko has been facing several legal battles and is currently serving jail time
00:44 for endangering state security.
00:47 He's denied all charges against him saying that they're intended to prevent him from
00:50 running in the general election.
00:52 And his PASTEF party remains hopeful that his name will be on the ballot papers in February.
00:58 President Ousmane Sonko remains in the race.
01:01 This is important.
01:02 He remains a candidate.
01:04 Sonko's candidacy will be examined by the Constitutional Council, which has the final
01:09 say.
01:10 In the meantime, other members from PASTEF have put themselves forward to ensure that
01:13 the party gets a place on the voting list.